


Old Friends

by Rose_lily_sunflowers



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Batfamily (DCU), Batfamily (DCU) Feels, Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Character Undeath, Death, Gen, Jason Todd Has Issues, Jason Todd-centric, Minor Character Death, Protective Jason Todd, Resurrected Jason Todd, Tim Drake Needs a Hug, Tim Drake is Not Okay, Tim Drake is Red Robin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:48:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29558637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rose_lily_sunflowers/pseuds/Rose_lily_sunflowers
Summary: You can say Death was an old friend of Jason Todd.He was the only one among the living who could see her, everyone knew why.What happens when you can talk to death herself?
Relationships: Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd & Everyone, Tim Drake & Jason Todd
Comments: 16
Kudos: 163





	Old Friends

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, look at this! another fic I wrote becouse I was stressed.  
> I was inspired to write this after I read a fanfic a while back. Jason could speak to death and stopped her from taking Tim's soul after a near death experience. Unfortunately I've lost the link. This coupled with the fact that we were in our finals week, made me write this!
> 
> Please enjoy!

The first time Jason saw her, he thought he was hallucinating. He thought that pale white skin and shoulder length silky black hair, dressed in black clothes was a product of his tired mind.

Because a goth guest in Wayne Manor?  
Not a chance.

A goth guest in the manor that was surprised he said hello? Even more impossible.

Jason lifted his head and stared at Her face, impossibly soft and young. He took a few steps closer. She stood her ground on the red carpet and her gaze was fixed somewhere beyond Jason on the ancient portraits.

She smiled and turned around, slowly walking away from him and Jason put all doubt away from his mind.

"Can I uh-- get you something Ms?" Jason asked seriously, he raised his voice a tad bit just to make sure the girl heard it.

The girl froze before she continued taking her graceful steps away from him. "No." she said. Jason saw the hint of a sad smile on her face. "I was here for... A visit."

"A visit?"

In the space between one word and the other, she was gone.

One moment she was giving Jason a sad knowing smile and the next, she wasn't there.

Jasons turned around, scanning the hallway for a sign of her, there was none. His eyes landed on the nearby mirror where he saw himself. He pushed his white hair streak away from his face. "Well that's weird." he murmured with irritation and stumped away.

There was no dust, magic or doorstep. As if she was never here at all.

Unknown to Jason, Stephanie suffered through a horrible beating from two-face a few hours prior and was being Kept in the batcave a few floors down where Jason saw the girl.

That night, Stephanie's heart stopped for two minutes, her eyes closed and the steady rise and fall of her chest ceased to exist right under Batman's eyes. Batman, who held her hand and comforted her as best as he could with small words of encouragement and pride.

Steph closed her eyes thinking she did good. Batman closed his eyes and swallowed the lump in his throat thinking he had failed.

Then, Steph miraculously sucked in a deep breath, her chest shook violently as her heart started to beat again.

The craziness of Gotham city made it hard to forget you're not immortal because you survived several superhuman attacks in your life.

And a near death ordeal reminded everyone in the family that Jason Peter Todd was still _officially_ dead.

Bruce wanted his first adopted son back in the land of the living. And he wanted it now. He was willing to go to much lengths if the secret visits and countless messages across Jason's hideouts were anything to go by.

Bruce hadn't told anybody but he was updating his will and he wanted the newly redeemed Jason to be a part of it.

But a dead man couldn't inherit.

A simple "we should tell the public Jason Todd is alive." was all the explanation Bruce gave him, everytime. Jason hung up on every call immediately and answered none of the messages that appeared in his way.

Bruce sent him a copy of every document he needed and the cover story. They tell the public He had survived the explosion, suffered a traumatic head injury and he recently made himself known to the family. Nada. Nada.

Jason muttered under his breath and put the phone on his pocket and never looked at it again.

He didn't know how he found himself at Gotham cemetery. The private Wayne cemetery where a lonely gravestone stood with the name of "Jason Peter Todd" carved on it.

Jason never thought he'd ever come here.

The sun was hidden behind dark clouds and lazy rain poured down his face. He never thought he'd stand on his own grave and stare at it without his heart giving out.

Did Bruce really crave the Wayne Family logo next to his name?

Jason wanted to laugh. He would, if this wasn't a cemetary.

"That's an empty grave."

Jason froze, he hesitantly turned his head to see the same Black-haired girl. Standing with a soft knowing smile and staring at the gravestone. "You're standing right here."

And then, it clicked.

Like a missing piece of a puzzle Jason didn't know he was missing.

"I know you. I've-- I've seen you before." Jason said as a matter of fact, pulling out his hidden gun and aiming at the not-girl.

She tilted her head upwards. "You have." she said gently. Instead of fearing the gun, she stepped forward. Jason found himself paralyzed from moving as she gently held the sides of his face, her touch gentle like a kind older sister he never had. "And I'm sorry for that."

Jason gulped and lowered his gun, putting it back on his safe spot.

"You're not here to take me again." He murmured when she let go, the phantom touch still there.

Death shook her head gently. "No." she said with a sad smile. "You have quite the interesting journey written for you in the book of Destiny."

"Hell, I don't believe in _Destiny_." Jason said and narrowed his eyes.

She nodded with a soft smile. "As you should." she murmured. "The book of destiny is vague. One that only has two dates written on it and an open story. You're lucky Jason."

She pronounced his name longer than she should have. Like Dick liked to. 'Jay-son' instead of Jason.

Jason huffed and took a step back to put some distance between them. "Then why are you here?" he whispered, eyes fixed back on the grave.

"You're alive, Jason." she murmured. "That grave is empty. You're _alive_."

"I know that." he muttered, trying to wipe the pouring rain out of his eyes.

"You can't live happily if a part of you is still in that grave."

Jason rolled his eyes, a snarky comment right on his tongue but he turned around and saw she was gone. He was surrounded by the same statues, rain and a gravestone.

Jason blinked a few times. His ears started to ring from the silence. He took a deep breath and listened to the sound of the rain and tried to breathe in the soothing scent of the trees.

Her voice echoed in his mind.

" _You can't live happily if a part of you is still in that grave."_

Jason breathed in slowly, and exhaled even slower.

He picked up his phone and called the first number. "I'll do it." Jason said before Bruce could say anything. "Jason Todd is alive, officially."

He could see Bruce grinning on the other side, very clearly.

"I'll call Lucois and the lawyers. Everything will set into motion."

Jason thought maybe she wouldn't come after him again, after all she did her unusual duty of making sure he was back with the living.

He was wrong.

She became a permanent fixture in his life when he signed up for Gotham City Police Academy. He was supposed to be undercover. To exploit the corruption within the police department, by force if necessary.

And he did, But Jason found he almost liked to _legally_ kick butt.

She was there, always. Not just for the times His partner was shot or when a knife barely missed his neck.

She was always there.

For every cup of calming coffee, for every pleasant sensation of sun on his skin, for every time it rained and the soothing smell of wet soil filled the air.

He started to like her presence.

"How are you here? Don't you have a job to do on the other side of the planet or something?" Jason asked over a cup of tea at three in the early morning in the balcony of his apartment.

Jason was leaning against the railing and staring at the lights of the city of Gotham. The orange light of early sun filled the city. She was sitting behind the coffee table.

Like always, the tea wasn't touched, it was there just for the constant reminder of how wrong Jason was about his guest. But she always thanked and smiled when he offered something, Tea, Coffee, chocolate.

A heartfelt conversation.

She smiled, her eyes dazed off the view from the balcony. "I have. I have a job to do and I'm doing it." she murmured, her voice lost to the wind and the only person who could hear it.

"Then why are you here? With me."

"I'm doing my job." She clarified.

Bruce was the first to go.

But Jason wasn't there to see it.

Jason counted himself Lucky that his last memory of his late adoptive-father was him saying "good work" after a long day of busting drug dealers.

Jason could feel the phantom touch on his head when Bruce reached out to ruffle his hair before sinking back into the emotionless Batman.

But the others weren't so lucky.

Which is why, against every logical thought, Jason decided to pick his spare keys and walk into Wayne Manor because Tim, Cassandra and Damian seriously needed an adult on their side until his majesty, robin the first, could gather himself.

Jason found Tim in the kitchen, perched up against the pristine white walls behind the island, his eyes tightly closed and his head pressed back, a mug of hot cocoa in his hands.

Tim was a bat, it came with no surprise that he whispered: "are you here to kill me?" the moment Jason stepped inside The kitchen.

Without ever opening the sore eyes.

Jason glared at his supposed brother. "Not now." he murmured. "You're in no shape to fight for yourself."

Tim tsked and shook his head. His eyes were closed but that didn't stop the small tear that escaped his left eye. His hands clasped around the untouched mug until his knuckles turned white.

He laughed nervously, the corner of his lips pulling upwards in a hysterical laugh. The mug was shaking and spilling in his hands no matter how much tim hugged it and tried to make it steady.

Tim opened his eyes and Jason didn't expect it to be so red. "Demon spawn thinks differently." Tim whispered. Tilting his head up so Jason could see a fresh red scar lining up to his chin from under his collar. "He threw me off the dinosaur, I landed on _your_ memorial case."

Jason bit the sides of his lip. "Oh." he hummed.

"So if you aren't going to kill me? What are you going to do?" Tim asked seriously, no hint of joke in his tone.

Jason shrugged and put his hands in his pocket. He leaned against the wall and slid down, sitting only an inch away from Tims shaking shoulders. "Where is Cassandra?" Jason mumbled, trying to force the conversation somewhere else.

Tim shut his eyes and shook his head. "Hong Kong." he murmured. "At Least that's what she told me."

"That far? Already?" Jason whispered. Where did that kid get a plane ticket so fast?

Oh of course. The Wayne family name, that she also carried, came with wondering privileges.

"She thought it was pointless to fight crime in Gotham now that Bruce was gone. Dumped the batgirl costume and went away to find her father... To bring him back to jail." Tim explained.

"No one can blame her." Jason murmured.

Tim let out a deep breath and tilted his head aside to rest it on Jason's tense shoulder. "She was so tired." he mumbled. " _I'm so tired, Jason_."

Jason tried to relax his shoulders.

Tim closed his eyes with a sigh.

Soon, Tim's body went numb and his breathing evened, his head comfortably rested on Jason's shoulder. Which begged the question: how long had he been awake?

Jason gently ruffled the boy's hair with his free hand. This boy seriously needed some help or he might get himself killed. Jason could be that help...

... Isn't that what Bruce would have wanted?

Hours passed in silence, sleep slowly starting to catch up with Jason as well. He let his eyed close without much of a fight.

But Jason was always a light sleeper. He could be awakened by the slightest of noises when he was a child. Batman's training and the league of assassin's torture definitely improved that ability.

Sometime during his sleep, Jason felt Damian coming inside the kitchen, His face barrel of any emotion.

But the careful face on Damian crumpled when he saw Tim resting so peacefully against Jason.

Jason saw Damian hesitate in the back of his eyes. He saw the slight twitch in his muscles, the slight frown and the lunging in his eyes.

But Damian didn't act. He fled the scene before he even made himself known.

Jason found Dick, in his police uniform, staring at the endless row of Batsuits in the batcave.

All of them are common in one thing, he hole in the suits. The hole that Bruce left.

Dick didn't move or respond to Jason's loud footsteps when he walked all the way to stand next to him. He crossed his arms and pressed his mouth to a thin line.

Jason could see Dicks horrified reflection on the sets. His face was hollow and filled with confusion and horror at the same time. The warm but calculating police officer was totally gone.

Jason stared at his blue eyes from the reflection. "You know what you should do." Jason said as a matter of fact. The words felt foreign even in his tongue.

With Cassandra gone to HongKong, Tim crippled in grief and Damian being the mystery factor he is....

....But Dick looked exhausted.

And Jason knew it.

He also knew that Bruce's idea for the Utopia that Gotham could go on without a bat was an utter lie.

Gotham would crumple a month without Batman. This half felt security was only guaranteed because of Batman's presence, remove him, and the house of cards will fall.

Dick pressed his right hand against the frame and leaned into it. His other hand ran across his tired face. He let his head fall. "I know" he said, more like forced the words out

Then, he felt **_her_** presence.

Jason's eyes widened, green eyes darted away to see her standing in the darkness of the cave, right at the opposite of Bruce's vast collection of Batsuits.

Jason narrowed his eyes at her. Why was she here? Why would she come? She always visited when Jason was at home so why at the cave--

And then Jason realised her eyes weren't locked on him. They were locked on Dick.

Immediately, Jason put a protective hand around Dicks shoulder and pushed him away from the bat suits. "Let's get out of here." He murmured, glaring down at her as much as he could while pushing the older, but shorter, man upstairs to the manor. "You can mop all you want, Later."

Dick didn't protest much about being forced upstairs, the cave was a crippling mess of unwanted memories anyway.

Jason never found out what was exactly so life threatening downstairs, but he was glad he stopped it.

Tim was the first one to break under grief.

Jason never expected to receive a call from Cassandra saying Tim was lost in an ancient cave far from Gotham. She might not reach it on time and she wanted her to go there and find Tim. The Cave of Barbatos, the bat god.

_What now?_

Jason sighed loudly and took a shot from the bartender before he headed out, drove on top gear until he reached the location Cass called Barbatos Cave.

A cave located on top of a mountain in a deserted area.

Jason stopped his bike on the entrance. The cave looked untouched, mostly, there were old signs of sword bites. Jason brushed his hand against it and walked inside.

Jason turned on the flashlight on his helmet and looked around. Something wasn't right, but he had nowhere to go but forward.

His foot hit a sword fallen on the ground. Jason kneeled down and picked it up. The sword was sharp, as deadly as it was beautiful.

The was a sign on the handle of the blade.

the Council of Spiders.

Jason dropped it and started to run. The calming silence of the cave became irritating and a danger.

Jason reached the end of the tunnel, He found Tim passed out in the dark under a bat symbol drawn with blood on the cave wall. The only source of light being the half-lit torch fallen next to his head.

Jason dropped to his knees next to the very still body. Tim had a sword in his abdomen, over his spleen and the sword was coated with blood, he pressed his hand against the wound and the dried blood. Jason's breath caught in his throat. He yanked the cowl off RedRobin and pressed his fingers to his neck.

His Breathing evened when there was a faint heartbeat over there.

Faint.

But existing.

Even if his chest was completely still.

And his wound wasn't bleeding anymore.

And **_she_** was there. Standing right above them.

Jason cradled Tims body in his arms, keeping this teenager, this younger brother close to his heart even when **_she_** stepped closer.

Determination flared in his green eyes. "Not him, Not now." he pleaded, trying to keep his brother's head steady in his hold. "He's just a kid."

She gave him a soft smile. "And so were you." she murmured.

Something clicked and Jason realised he was Tims age when the joker blew him up. That made him pull Tim's still body even closer.

Death extended a hand towards Timothy, Jason pulled his body back.

"Exactly... He's just a kid." Jason murmured, gently caressing Tims slowly cooling cheek. "He still has life. He still can be saved."

Her eyes softened. "There's nothing I can do." she said softly and took a step forward, Jason shielded Tim from her touch.

"Yes you can." he said, voice slowly going breathless, desperate.

She dropped her hand and stared at Jason's eyes with a bitter smile. "You are shifting the balance, Jason." she murmured. "Just because you can do it doesn't mean you should."

Jason said nothing, he just narrowed his eyes. "Don't take him, he's just a kid." he said seriously, even if his hands were starting to shake.

She knelt down in front of him and smiled. Her eyes fell on Timothy once again. "You're a lucky one." She said, gently reaching for Tim's face and pushing the bloodied hair out of his face. "The book of destiny rarely changes. Its a generous offer that doubled your life."

Jason stilled when Tims lungs suddenly expanded and his breath came out in a painful sob. Tims entire upper body started to shake, trying to get his failing lungs to take a breath. "Replacement?" he murmured and gently put him on the ground.

Tims face twisted in pain and his shaking hand went towards the sword on his side, trying to close the wound. Painful little cries of pain left his mouth, which made Jason's heart throb harder.

"Hush, hush, it's ok." Jason murmured and sent an SOS to Oracle, for the batmobile to get them to Dr Thompskins. Jason looked up to see death no were near them. "Thanks." he murmured, knowing she would hear.

Jason stopped Tim's trembling hands from pulling out the sword. "Hey, hey it's ok." he murmured, holding his hand around the wound.

Did Tim even know what was going in around him?

"We're gonna get you all fixed up." Jason murmured and tried to ignore the way Tim was hissing in pain. Or the way his eyes were shut closed and his eyebrows frowned or his lips trembled.

But Tim's heart was beating.

He was breathing.

he was alive.

All will be well.

**Author's Note:**

> I might write two more chapters and post it soon. But that'll just make the story too depressing. It all depends.
> 
> Don't forget to kudos or leave a comment. That makes poor author very happy :D


End file.
